Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Loughrea and Nosara

For one person, living is cheaper in Nosara: $1,839 a month against $2,512 in Loughrea, rent and utilities included – about $8,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

123

Cost of Living Index in Loughrea
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Loughrea Living Index
89

Cost of Living Index in Nosara
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Nosara Living Index

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Loughrea

🇮🇪 Ireland

$2,512

/mo nomad

Nosara

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,839

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Loughrea and in Nosara

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Loughrea and in Nosara actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,512 in Loughrea versus $1,839 in Nosara.

Loughrea $2,512
Nosara $1,839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,724 in Loughrea versus $2,828 in Nosara.

Loughrea $3,724
Nosara $2,828

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,936 in Loughrea versus $3,818 in Nosara.

Loughrea $4,936
Nosara $3,818

Living in Loughrea is roughly 37% more expensive than in Nosara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Loughrea 86% above, Nosara 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$23.22 €20.62

$12.35 ₡5,547

88.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$102 €90.8

$61.2 ₡27.5K

67.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.62 €12.10

$7.52 ₡3,377

81.12%

Cappuccino

$3.38 €3.01

$4.41 ₡1,981

-23.36%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 €1.93

$1.74 ₡781

24.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 €1.98

$1.31 ₡588

70.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.45 €4.84

$3.28 ₡1,473

66.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.39 €3.90

$4.47 ₡2,007

-1.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 €1.48

$1.56 ₡702

6.41%

White Bread (500g)

$2.26 €2.01

$3.02 ₡1,357

-25.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.98 €1.76

$2.51 ₡1,127

-21.12%

Eggs

$4.82 €4.28

$3.57 ₡1,605

35.01%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.45 €3.06

$7.43 ₡3,338

-53.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.65 €5.90

$10.52 ₡4,724

-36.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.08 €9.84

$13.97 ₡6,274

-20.69%

Apples (1kg)

$2.70 €2.40

$2.35 ₡1,054

14.89%

Banana (1kg)

$2.24 €1.99

$1.61 ₡721

39.13%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.72 €2.41

$4.80 ₡2,155

-43.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.44 €3.95

$1.61 ₡725

175.78%

Potato (1kg)

$1.86 €1.65

$3.80 ₡1,706

-51.05%

Onion (1kg)

$1.54 €1.37

$3.69 ₡1,659

-58.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.76 €0.67

$1.13 ₡507

-32.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.08 €1.84

$2.66 ₡1,193

-21.80%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$21.25 €18.87

$5.18 ₡2,324

310.23%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.16 €11.69

$19.88 ₡8,929

-33.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.44 €3.05

$2.90 ₡1,302

18.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.43 €3.04

$3.63 ₡1,628

-5.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.66 €2.36

$1.12 ₡505

137.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$55.0 €48.84

$72.6 ₡32.6K

-24.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.23 €4.64

$2.14 ₡959

144.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.52 €1.35

$1.57 ₡704

-3.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$37.00 €32.86

$8.52 ₡3,828

334.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.78 €1.58

$1.52 ₡683

17.11%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$38.6K €34.3K

$21.6K ₡9.7M

78.73%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$39.4K €35.0K

$34.5K ₡15.5M

14.11%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$164 €146

$96.3 ₡43.2K

70.74%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$18.15 €16.12

$35.89 ₡16.1K

-49.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.0 €46.15

$53.6 ₡24.1K

-3.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$59.6 €52.9

$71.6 ₡32.2K

-16.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$49.26 €43.75

$34.91 ₡15.7K

41.11%

Cinema Ticket

$15.35 €13.63

$7.89 ₡3,544

94.55%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$1,255 €1,115

$494 ₡221.9K

154.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,363 €4,763

$11.9K ₡5.3M

-54.77%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.5 €79.5

$53.9 ₡24.2K

65.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.98 €44.38

$55.4 ₡24.9K

-9.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 €101

$77.9 ₡35.0K

45.33%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$128 €114

$79.6 ₡35.8K

60.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,598 €1,419

$788 ₡353.9K

102.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,326 €1,178

$794 ₡356.7K

66.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,530 €2,247

$3,939 ₡1.8M

-35.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,089 €1,856

$1,419 ₡637.4K

47.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,912 ₡3.1M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,224 ₡549.8K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,538 €2,254

$864 ₡387.8K

193.87%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.82

8.62

-55.68%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Loughrea: October 11, 2026

Last update for Nosara: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Loughrea

$1.3K 52.8%

Nosara

$794 43.2% 40.1% $532

Eating Out

Loughrea

$321 12.8%

Nosara

$212 11.5% 34% $109

Groceries & Markets

Loughrea

$290 11.6%

Nosara

$352 19.2% 21.4% $62

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Loughrea

$235 9.3%

Nosara

$186 10.1% 20.8% $49

Clothing & Footwear

Loughrea

$171 6.8%

Nosara

$120 6.5% 29.9% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Loughrea

$90 3.6%

Nosara

$87 4.8% 3.2% $2.9

Getting Around

Loughrea

$78 3.1%

Nosara

$87 4.7% 11% $8.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,598 in Loughrea and $788 in Nosara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Loughrea pays 194% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $102 in Loughrea vs $61.0 in Nosara. Groceries flip the comparison at $290 vs $352, with Loughrea cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇮🇪 Loughrea

🇨🇷 Nosara

🕒 Local time

06:54 6:54 AM

23:54 11:54 PM

7 h behind Loughrea

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,600

4,912

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.13 USD

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.888 EUR (1 EUR = 1.13 USD).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 449 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 506 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Loughrea Nosara 8,260 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Loughrea
Nosara

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Loughrea vs Nosara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Loughrea and Nosara differ by about 37% in total monthly costs ($2,512 vs $1,839 including rent). Nosara is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 194% higher in Loughrea, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,598 in Loughrea versus $788 in Nosara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Loughrea pay roughly 21% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Dining out is cheaper in Nosara – a meal for two runs $61.0 versus $102 in Loughrea. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,839 in Nosara versus $2,512 in Loughrea, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Nosara but tight or insufficient in Loughrea. The gap between the two cities makes Nosara the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Loughrea and Nosara are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Nosara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 37% less than in Loughrea. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.